Catching Fire by
Suzanne Collins
My rating:
2 of 5 stars
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
by: Suzanne Collins
Finding Out About the Book
When the school year began, we already had to start reading books! I was worried because I had already read all the books I wanted to read. Gladly, we got to search for them and then pick 3 out. Turns out, I had A LOT of books I had wanted to read. I read the first book of the series in September. I absolutely LOVED IT. I just had to keep reading them. They were so similar to the Maximum Ride series.
What I Thought of It
I can't really explain it at all. My feelings for this book are so mixed up. At the end of the book, I kind of hated/liked it. It was so confusing. I hated it because I really didn't like that it centered mostly on Peeta and Katniss's relationship and how they want to stop a rebellion. What I liked was that there were a lot of surprises because they had to go through a second Hunger Games. Suzanne Collins should have stuck to the general idea of maybe having Peeta and Katniss in the second Hunger Games from the beginning. When they went to the second hunger games in the second book, it was kind of late to have a second one right in the middle of it.
Meaningful Quotes
"So it's you and a syringe against the Capitol? See, this is why no one lets you make the plans."
This quote really stood out for me because it reminded me of Max from the Maximum Ride series. Haymitch, Katniss's mentor, says this after Katniss comes out of the ER on the day they busted her out of the Hunger Game's arena. She woke up dazed and confused because she got electrocuted from a plan that went wrong. She thought Peeta, her partner, was hurt badly. So, she wanted to end his misery by stabbing him with the syringe. Haymitch comes out though, and stops her. This was important because this was the beginning started the rebellion in the Hunger Games. Peeta, Katniss's partner, does not make it out of the arena. Katniss is outraged because they saved her instead of Peeta.
"The bird, the pin, the song, the berries, the watch, the cracker, the dress that burst into flames. I am the mockingjay. The one that survived despite the Capitol's plans. The symbol of the rebellion."
This quote stood out because this basically says "The rebellion started because of me." This was such an important quote from Katniss because she finally accepts that she is the one and only symbol of the rebellion. When she mentions "The bird, the pin, the song, the berries, the watch, the cracler, the dress that burst into flames...." She did all those things. The bird she refers to is the Mockingjay. It was originally a Jabberjay that was used as a weapon for the Capitol, but it backfired. So, she let them out in the wild to die. However, their populations grew in size because they mated with the Mockingbird. This, was a symbol of something that survived through obstacles and is still standing alive. The pin she refers to is a mockingjay pin that she wore; this pin played a part in the rebellion by being the symbol for it. The song Katniss refers to is the song she sang to her friend that was killed at the Hunger Games. This was also a sign of defiance from her to the Capitol. The berries played a significant part of the rebellion. Peeta and Katniss were tricked into killing each other. They thought they both could win, but the Capitol dismissed it. The berries they picked were berries that would kill them. They were both about to take it when the Capitol immediately regretted what they did, and let them both win the Games. This stunt sparked the idea of the rebellion. The watch which she refers to is a actually the game arena for the second Hunger Games she was forced into. The cracker became important too because it had her face on it. Two women ran away from their district just to give this to her. It's a sign that they're joining the rebellion. Finally, the burning dress refers to Katniss's stylist Cinna. He was who Katniss trusted the most during the Games. As a sign that Cinna was part of the rebellion, he had made a wedding dress made for her. However, when Katniss and Peeta attempted to extinguish the flames of rebellion by saying that they just did that stunt because they were madly inlove with each other, her dress burned down into a mockingjay suit that Cinna made for her. Since the Capitol saw this as a defiance against them, Cinna was beaten and was killed.
Review/Rate part
Although I didn't really like this book a whole lot, it was still good. Not the best sequel to a book I've ever read, but it was okay. The only parts I really liked were the very last pages because I felt the characters stood out more in the end. They start to show what kind of person they really are. You discover their strengths, weaknesses, and personalities. All in all I would give this book a 2.5 out of 5. I would still recommend this book, mostly because it's plays a big part in the end of the series.
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